BERLIN: German weekly magazine Der Spiegel sparked controversy at home and abroad on Saturday with a front cover illustration of US President Donald Trump beheading the Statue of Liberty.
It depicts a cartoon figure of Trump with a bloodied knife in one hand and the statue’s head, dripping with blood, in the other. It carries the caption: “America First.”
The artist who designed the cover, Edel Rodriguez, a Cuban who came to the United States in 1980 as a political refugee, told The Washington Post: “It’s a beheading of democracy, a beheading of a sacred symbol.”
The cover set off a debate on Twitter and in German and international media, with Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, a member of Germany’s Free Democrats (FDP) and vice president of the European Parliament, describing it as “tasteless.”
The cover follows a series of attacks on Berlin’s policies by Trump and his aides, marking a rapid deterioration in German relations with the United States. Chancellor Angela Merkel was the go-to European ally for former US president Barack Obama, who praised her as “an outstanding partner.”
Last month, Trump said Merkel had made a “catastrophic mistake” with her open-door migration policy, and this week his top trade adviser said Germany was using a “grossly undervalued” euro to gain advantage over the United States and its European partners.
No one was available for comment on the Spiegel cover at the US embassy in Berlin.
German magazine sparks furor with image of Trump beheading Statue of Liberty
German magazine sparks furor with image of Trump beheading Statue of Liberty
Israel extends foreign media ban law until end of 2027
- Order replaces temporary emergency legislation that allowed authorization of so-called ‘Al Jazeera bill’
- Extension of temporary order empowers Communications Ministry to restrict foreign channels deemed to cause ‘real harm to state security’
LONDON: Israel’s Knesset approved late Monday an extension of the temporary order empowering the Communications Ministry to shut down foreign media outlets, pushing the measure through until Dec. 31, 2027.
The bill, proposed by Likud lawmaker Ariel Kallner, passed its second and third readings by a 22-10 vote, replacing wartime emergency legislation known as the “Al Jazeera Law.”
Under the extended order, the communications minister — with prime ministerial approval and security cabinet or government ratification — can restrict foreign channels deemed to cause “real harm to state security,” even outside states of emergency.
Measures include suspending broadcasts, closing offices, seizing equipment, blocking websites, and directing the defense minister to block satellite signals, including in the West Bank, without disrupting other channels.
Administrative orders last 90 days, with possible extensions. Unlike the temporary measure, the new law does not require court approval to shut down a media outlet.
The move has drawn sharp criticism from human rights and media groups, who warn it entrenches restrictions on Arab and foreign outlets amid a broader erosion of press freedoms.
“Israel is openly waging a battle against media outlets, both local and foreign, that criticize the government’s narrative; that is typical behavior of authoritarian regimes,” International Federation of Journalists General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said in November after the bill’s first reading.
“We are deeply concerned about the Israeli parliament passing this controversial bill, as it would be a serious blow to free speech and media freedom, and a direct attack on the public’s right to know.”
In a parallel development, the Israeli Cabinet unanimously approved on Monday the shutdown of Army Radio (Galei Tzahal) after 75 years, with operations ceasing on March 1, 2026.
In a statement, Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara warned the decision “undermines public broadcasting in Israel and restricts freedom of expression,” lacking a legal basis.
